Observational Photography: Geometry in nature

For my semester two project, I started by taking some photos of geometry in nature, especially sequences and symmetry. I picked this as a starting point as I really like making my art from observation, and bringing nature to peoples attention. At the start of a project, I enjoy being quite broad, to let myself go in different directions without being pinned down to a very narrow or specific theme.

 I want to look at repeating shapes, but also how these slightly change in nature and each one is ever so slightly different. This will link with the idea of sequence.

Self directed project.

I've just started semester two, and our new project is entirely self directed, we haven't been given a starting point, or a certain media to use, but we can sign up for whichever workshops we want to do. I've decided to continue researching the theme of unnoticed, which I've looked into quite a lot in the past. I've decided to focus on how art can make the unnoticed very obvious, or how artists can make something that goes overlooked because of its scale or how they present it. In my initial research I have looked at artists who use these themes.

 Susan Collis makes everyday objects, which are often overlooked in her exhibitions. Many people think the exhibition isn't set up yet, but in actual fact they haven't looked at the objects properly. 'As good as it gets' looks like a screw in a wall, but is made from 18 carat white gold, white sapphire, turquoise and onyx.

 'The oyster's our world' is a wooden stepladder, which looks like it's been splattered with paint, but the splashes are actually mother of pearl, shell, coral, fresh water pearl, cultured pearls, white opal and diamond inlaid into the wood. I think these works question the way we see things and how we assume things about what we look at without investigating them properly.

 Grace Eun Mi Lee is a ceramic artist, who looks at microorganisms and uses the shapes and patterns from these to inspire her work. I really like how she collects them together, hundreds of tiny pieces making up one monumental work of art. tiny creatures and dust particles are everywhere, thousands of them, and her work makes people thing about 'another form of existence' which coexist with us everyday.

The Boyle family are a family of artists, who are quite well known for their replicas of places. they travel to an exact spot and use various media and pieces they find on location to create exact copies. I think the thing I like best about these pieces is how they are displayed. These pieces are not recognisable pieces of land, they don't have specific defining features, but presenting them vertically, it makes people really look at the patterns and shapes, which ordinarily they would have walked over without a second thought.

New Project: Old to New

For my new project, I wanted to carry on the ideas I was working on towards the end of my trace elements: using pottery shards, and making them into new things, and also mending broken items using new  materials and methods.
I have chosen the title 'Old to New' for my new project, focussing on making new objects and small items from old, recycled or reclaimed materials. As a starting point I am planning to look at the shapes, patterns and colours in flowers and leaves to influence my making.
My main reasons for choosing this project theme is based on research I have been doing for my essay, and the artists I have been looking at all use reclaimed materials and small remnants of pieces, left over from something else. I want to bring this into my own project.